The Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic mascots were revealed on 14 November after days of social media teasers through an integrated unveiling campaign called ‘Meet The Phryges’ (pronounced ‘fri-jee-uhs’).
Created on designs inspired by traditional Phrygian caps and decked out in France’s national colours with the golden Paris 2024 logo across their chests, the Paris mascot pairing are to be known as the Olympic and Paralympic Phryges.
The designs seek to celebrate the French revolution’s spirit – an ideal, a conviction that carries the values of the country built up over time and through history – and are based on the cap worn by the ‘Marianne’ figure who came to personify the French Revolution and then France itself.
The mascots have blue eyes and two ribbons in the colours of the French flag and in the style of a cockade (a knot/ribbon that was another symbol of republicanism during the French Revolution) and both mascots share mischievous and expressive eyes and a motto: “Alone we go faster, but together we go further”.
The Olympic Phryge is described as ‘a tactician with a calculating brain’, while the Paralympic Phryge is ‘spontaneous and full of energy and enthusiasm’. The Paralympic mascot has a running blade: the first time that a Games mascot has itself had a visible disability.
The mascots were co-designed by the creative agency W and the Paris 2024 design teams, two small French companies – Gipsy and Doudou et Compagnie – are the official licensees for the production and distribution of the mascot toys which are available to buy from 15 November in Carrefour (the Games’ premium partner and distributor) supermarkets, selected toy shops, as well as in Paris 2024’s first official boutique in the Les Halles shopping centre .
The unveiling campaign kicked off on 7 November with a series of impatient, foot-tapping teasers containing snippet images of the mascots ahead of the 14 November full unveiling at an in-person ceremony in Saint-Denis accompanied by a hero launch film, imagery and a major PR push across local organising committee, IOC and IPC platforms.
14/11/2022
They are coming…
Elles arrivent…#Paris2024 @Olympics @Paralympics pic.twitter.com/mzh2mi7PEv— Paris 2024 (@Paris2024) November 7, 2022
Elle a hâte…⏱
Rendez-vous le 14/11
–
It can't wait!
See you on 14/11 #Paris2024 @jeuxolympiques pic.twitter.com/MQOW26hiX9— Paris 2024 (@Paris2024) November 10, 2022
It’s getting impatient…⏱
See you on 14/11
–
Elle s’impatiente
Rendez-vous le 14/11 #Paris2024 @Paralympics pic.twitter.com/WN66HKvO1X— Paris 2024 (@Paris2024) November 12, 2022
…⏱️#Paris2024 https://t.co/ZF4ILFb3gQ
— Paris 2024 (@Paris2024) November 14, 2022
On vous présente la Phryge Olympique et la Phryge Paralympique !
Les mascottes de #Paris2024 ✨
Sportives, fêtardes… et françaisesHere are the Olympic Phryge and the Paralympic Phryge!
The #Paris2024 mascots ✨
They are sporty, love to party… and are so French pic.twitter.com/plupKzQqNs— Paris 2024 (@Paris2024) November 14, 2022
The Olympic Phryge and the Paralympic Phryge are taking the lead of a tribe which always has its trainers on
What could be better than little Phrygian caps to lead the revolution through sport and accompany us to the #Paris2024 Games! pic.twitter.com/hUjFI09zZM— Paris 2024 (@Paris2024) November 14, 2022
On vous présente la Phryge Olympique et la Phryge Paralympique !
Les mascottes de #Paris2024 ✨
Sportives, fêtardes… et françaisesHere are the Olympic Phryge and the Paralympic Phryge!
The #Paris2024 mascots ✨
They are sporty, love to party… and are so French pic.twitter.com/plupKzQqNs— Paris 2024 (@Paris2024) November 14, 2022
La Phryge Paralympique ✨
Elle entraîne tout le monde avec son énergie et son enthousiasmeThe Paralympique Phryge ✨
It will rally everyone around it with its energy and enthusiasmThread 3/4 pic.twitter.com/HiMIwRsdfW
— Paris 2024 (@Paris2024) November 14, 2022
“We chose an ideal rather than an animal,” explained Paris 2024 President Tony Estanguet. “We chose the Phrygian cap because it’s a very strong symbol for the French Republic. For French people, it’s a very well-known object that is a symbol of freedom. The fact that the Paralympics mascot has a visible disability also sends a strong message: to promote inclusion.”
Paris 2024 Brand Manager Julie Matikhine added: “It is a mascot who embodies the French spirit. An ideal that carries the values of our country, a part of our history and a singular point of view on the world.”
Comment
hats off….these mascots break a long Games tradition as they are the first not be in the shape/form of some type of animal (real or imagined) will be made in China and organisers aim to sell two million of the toys.
Of course, as well as being part of the marketing, mascots can be big business: remember how disappointing sales of the 2012 official London Games mascots Wenlock and Mandeville led to a significant fall in toy manufacturer Hornby’s shares.
Since ‘Schuss’ (an abstract figure on skis) appeared at the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble the IOC has recognised official Games’ mascots and the first recognised Summer Games mascot was Waldi (a multi-coloured Dachshund dog created by Elena Winschermann for the 1972 Munich Games).
The Olympic Games will be held from 26 July to 11 August 2024 and the Paralympics will run from 28 August to 8 September
This won’t be the only element of the Games which reflect French history or the revolution: the marathon route mirrors the one French women took to Versailles from Paris on 5 October 1789 to protest over principally the rising price of bread.
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